Steering Column Rebuild

[Tbird1044]

I rebuilt a spare column for a friend and thought I would post some pics. That is the reason for the color change. It came out of a blue car and is going in a red interior. Now I have another friend who wants me to rebuild the column I will remove and rebuild it for his car. Guess owners are getting tired of having these things poping out of reverse and going into park.
Nyles

[YellowRose]

Steering Column Rebuild

Nyles, did you find that the shift tube selector arm at the bottom of the steering column was worn? That is often the cause of a lot of sloppy shifting or not being able to lock it into Park or one of the other positions. If it is worn, now is a good time to replace it. You can get it from the Tbird parts houses..

[Tbird1044]

Ray:
I have found that when I rebuild a column, I replace 5 parts. The detent plate, shift arm, shift collar, upper bearing and race, and the shift lever. All of these parts, with the exception of the bearing, have wear point and can contribute to slop in the shift linkage. Even with all new parts, there is a little play in the linage, but it is a major improvement and no more concerns about coming out of park or knowing what gear range you are in. I think all of the parts listed cost about $175, with the shift collar being the most expensive at $110. Without replacing the shift collar, the linkage will still lock in place nicely, but the indicator will be a llittle more sloppy on the PRNDDL.
As for your question about the shift arm, they are usually worn causing a lot of play in the linkage. I really think these are more critical than the detent plate.
Nyles

[YellowRose]

Steering Column Rebuild

Yes, Frank, one of our Down Under members, has worked on COM's for many years. He has always been a proponent of replacing that shift lever arm with a new one. He says, as you do, that one piece is often more of a cause of the problem than the detent plate can be. However, ALL those components you mentioned, can and do wear after some 50 years of use. One other area to check into is the linkage down at the tranny. There are rubber bushings that can get worn, mis-shaped, fall out, etc.. Also an internal adjustment might help improve that problem.

[GTE427]

Could you talk about the shift collar more. I thought the wear to the collar happens where the roll pin goes thru the collar and lever. In the photos, it appears that a roll pin wasn't use, instead some hardware with a head that may have required a larger clearance hole. I'd like to better understand how this connection is made and whether a new collar is required. Thanks

[Restifier52]

I had replaced the detent plate and the arm and still had significant slop in the shifter. I bought a shift collar from one of our vendors. To my surprise it had more play than my original. However the roll pin hole on my original was worn out so I decided to modify the new one. I cut a piece of sheet metal into a rectangle and epoxied it to one of the walls of the slot (where the tab on the tube engages) inside the shift collar. I was more lucky than good because I didn't have accurate dimensions but it worked. I bought a new lever too and I can feel the difference. Shifter has a nice firm feel now. I used to be apprehensive about disassembling the top of the steering column but after a few times it's pretty easy.

[Tbird1044]

Ken:
You are correct about the wear on the shift collar in the roll pin location for holding the shift select lever. The reason there is a a small bolt in the picture, is that I didn't want to drive the roll pin in until I find out if my friends shift lever, in his car, is in better condition. This design for the roll pin connection, has the interference fit in the shift lever, which means that the roll pin rotates in the shift collar and causes the wear. On my own column, I replaced the roll pin with a two piece shoulder bolt that I found at Ace Hardware (see picture). It worked out pretty sweet and allowed me to put to small bushings in the original shift collar.
The second wear point on the shift collar is where the collar slides on the internal column tube keyway. The key is hard steel and the shift collar is a softer pot metal. The key to collar slot will get worn causing some play. I was a little disappointed with the fit of the new collar, but it was a definite improvement over the old one.
Nyles

[Tbird1044]

I got to check my friends shift indicator today, after he replaced the lower rubber bushing, where the shift linkage connects to the transmission. It still had more play in it that I would like. Restifier52 stated that he replaced the shift collar and the new one was not much better than old one, except the shift lever pin fit wasn't all rounded out. I experienced the same thing. It is like the manufacturer took a worn out shift collar and reproduced it to the worn tolerances. A little disappointing. It is the highest dollar item on a column rebuild. I am going to contact the supplier and let them know of my disappointment. We shouldn't have to epoxy a shim in a reproduced part.
Nyles

[Yadkin]

I rebuilt my steering column a while back in my '64 and had purchased a supply of reproduction parts for what I figured would be worn. Most of the new parts were junk and I ended up using the old ones. For instance the lens for the PRND1D2L was the wrong color and printed at an odd angle. The shift detent plate was cut poorly.

Since the time that I ordered parts was over a year (I have a job and a life) all the unused parts are non-returnable. This is a very frustrating hobby at times.